Sins of the Past
by buttercupandwestley
Summary: Post Alpha Sapphire - Hardenshipping - After the events of AS, Archie and Maxie are sharing a base, and have even unofficially adopted May. But everything changes when Archie starts losing sleep, and Maxie suspects there's more going on than meets the eye. What could Archie be so afraid of?
1. Maxie's Mistake

This takes place after the events of ALPHA SAPPHIRE, and contains major Hardenshipping.

**[A/N:] I really liked the idea of Post-Game Archie/Maxie unofficially adopting May, so I've incorporated some of that into the story.**

* * *

It had been almost a year. A year since Archie had made the biggest mistake of his life, and had almost ended the world. The thought still haunted him every day, and it was rare for him to sleep at night.

But over the course of the year, things started to get better. Team Aqua and Magma had joined forces to improve the world that they were already living in, and were now sharing a base. Maxie and Archie began to gradually break down the walls that had been built between them, and had been dating for almost six months. Another surprise came in the form of May, the young heroine who had saved Hoenn. She became a regular visitor at the Magma/Aqua base, and she even had a room of her own prepared for her whenever she came to stay for a while. Archie looked forward to her visits, as did Maxie, even if he wouldn't admit it.

Every morning, Maxie woke up to the smell of food from the kitchen. Pancakes, it seemed on this particular day. Still in a half-asleep stupor, he fumbled for his glasses and put them on, before donning a robe and making his way to the kitchen.

"Good morning, Max!" Archie smiled just as wide as ever, turning away from the stove for a minute. It wasn't obvious to the untrained eye, but Maxie could tell that his boyfriend hadn't slept much last night. Still not fully awake, Maxie mumbled a greeting and poured himself a cup of coffee, sitting down at the kitchen table with the newspaper that Mightyena had fetched that morning. The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable. In fact, they both found it comforting in a way. After a few minutes, Archie sat a plate full of pancakes down on the table and sat down, snatching a section of the paper from Maxie.

"Looks like Lisia's still the reigning champ in the Contest Spectaculars." Archie's attempt at conversation was met with a vague eyebrow arch of acknowledgement. "It says here she might go on to take part in contests in Sinnoh."

More silence.

They ate quietly for a while, before Maxie finally spoke.

"You haven't been sleeping again." Archie flinched. He thought he covered his tracks quite well, but Max always had a way of seeing through him. He just didn't want anyone to worry about him, that's all.

"I guess not." He replied quietly, at a loss for words. Abruptly, Maxie flattened the paper against the table and glared.

"You can't keep doing this, you know. Everyone's getting worried about you, even the child." Archie sighed and turned his back on him, putting the plates in the sink.

"Yeah, yeah, I know." He looked away sheepishly. There was silence again, but this time it felt cold and heavy. The tense air was finally cleared by Archie, who turned from the sink.

"Hey Max?"

"Hm?"

"There's…something I've been meaning to say to you." Maxie looked up from the paper again, stunned by the seriousness in his tone. This wasn't like Archie at all.

"What is it?" The former Team Aqua leader paused, clearing his throat as if choosing his next words carefully. Just as he was about to answer, there was a loud knock from the doorway, startling both men. They looked at each other for a moment, and then opened the door.

"Good morning, guys!" Standing in the doorway to the kitchen was a soaking wet May, carrying her bag in one arm, and her Skitty in the other.

"May? You're soaked, come on. Let's get you dried off before you get sick or something." Archie's serious train of thought had been derailed, leaving Maxie to wonder just what he had been so serious about telling him. These questions didn't last long, as he soon noticed the trail of mud that May and her Pokémon had created.

"MAY!"

* * *

While Maxie thoroughly mopped the floor, Archie helped May give her Pokémon a bath. According to May, there was a terrible rain storm raging outside. After everything was clean, Archie absentmindedly turned on the television.

_"This is a BuzzNav special report. The Weather Institute has issued a severe weather alert for the entire Hoenn region. The storm is expected to reach extreme speeds, and there are reports of lightning strikes coming in from all over the region. If you live near a body of water, it's recommended you get to high ground in case of flooding. Other than evacuating for flood danger, the people at the Weather Institute are asking you to stay inside unless absolutely necessary."_

"Wow, I'm glad I got here when I did. I'd hate to be caught out in that storm." Archie nodded.

"Yeah, I'm glad too. I think it'd probably be best if you stayed here until the storm passes, though."

"Right." The rest of the afternoon was spent in pleasant conversation. Archie even managed to find a few board games in the closet. The rainy day seemed to be perfect, except for the fact that Maxie's mind was far from him. He still wanted to know what Archie was trying to tell him earlier. Archie would never be hiding something from him, right? These thoughts kept coming, no matter how much he tried to push them aside. He realized that he'd have to confront his partner about it eventually, as much as he dreaded hearing the answer.

"Maxie? Hey Maxie, it's your turn!" May's voice snapped him out of his thoughts, and he turned back to the Scrabble board.

"Right, sorry. Where were we?"

"First of all, you have to tell Archie that 'aa' isn't a word. Then it's your turn." Maxie sighed.

"Actually, he's right. Aa is a Hawaiian word for lava. It counts." Archie looked shocked.

"Wait, it does?" He stopped. "I mean, of course it does. See, I totally pay attention when you talk about lava and stuff, Max." May stuck her tongue out at him, and he responded in turn, throwing a pillow from the couch at her. They got into a pillow fight, even dragging Maxie into the middle of it, landing all three of them into a heap of pillows on the carpet. Forgetting his worries for the moment, Maxie cracked a rare smile. Moments like this were the reason that he loved it here so much. This place and these people made him so happy, and he hoped nothing was ever going to change that.

* * *

Two pillow fights and three Scrabble games later, the three ate lunch, and then May went off to her room to watch TV. Archie and Maxie stood in front of the sink, doing the dishes together, both deep in thought. At the same moment, they turned to address one another. Stopping when they spoke at the same time, they both smiled a bit.

"You first." Archie said. Maxie bit his lip, thinking about what to say.

"Archie, what were you trying to tell me earlier, before May came in?" This time it was Archie's turn to be silent. He sighed again before turning away.

"It was nothing."

"Obviously it was something, or else you wouldn't have said anything."

"Look, I said it's not important, OK?" The sudden edge in Archie's voice made the redhead jump back in surprise. His eyes widened in annoyance.

"It's important to me." He persisted. "If we're going to have any chance of maintaining this relationship, we can't be hiding things from each other." Archie whirled around, a sudden flash of anger on his face.

"Hiding things? Just what are you accusing me of?"

"I don't know, what have you done that you have to hide?" Sharp words flew through the air at lightning speeds as the couple continued to argue.

"I can't believe you actually think I'm keeping things from you! Don't you trust me at all?"

"It's kind of hard to trust someone who never tells me anything. You don't sleep for weeks on end, and you tell me it's nothing. Then you come forward with something important to say, and refuse to tell me what it is."

"So you DON'T trust me. I see how it is. You never could trust anyone, could you? You never open up your heart enough to trust anyone but yourself. It's not like you've never made a mistake before, Maxie." His words hurt, but Maxie still refused to back down.

"Mistakes? That hardly begins to cover it. Keeping secrets is one thing, but at least I didn't almost bring about the end of the world!" Maxie gasped, realizing what he just said. He desperately wished he could take back the words that seemed to hang in the air. Archie was quiet, a look of astonished silence on his face. He made no attempt to speak, but Maxie was sure he could almost see tears begin to roll from his eyes as he turned and dashed out of the kitchen.

"Archie, wait!" He let the other man go, thinking on the huge mistake he had just made. He wasn't left alone with his thoughts for long, before a small voice peeped up from the doorway.

"M-Maxie?" There were tears in her eyes as she peeked out from around the corner, hugging her Skitty for dear life.

"May." He flinched, wondering how long she'd been standing there. She walked over to him, sniffling. He knelt down to her level, wiping a tear away with his hand. "How much of that did you hear?"

"Enough. I heard you guys yelling, so I came out to see what was wrong." She looked into his eyes with an expression that broke Maxie's heart. "Are we still a family?" She asked. With that, Maxie's stoic demeanour shattered, and he cried with her, pulling the girl into his arms.

"I don't know." He said. The moment ended with yet another knock, and Shelly threw open the door.

"Mr. Maxie! Sorry to bother you, but we have a problem. Whatever happened in here, it must have really upset Archie." Maxie stood up, putting his glasses back on to hide the evidence of tears.

"What's your point, Shelley? I'll talk to Archie later after we've both calmed down."

"That's just it, sir. He's gone." May let out a small gasp, and took Maxie's hand.

"Gone?! What do you mean by that?" Shelley looked scared as she answered.

"He left the base, Maxie. He's gone out into the storm alone."

* * *

**[A/N] : Let me know if you'd like me to continue, this one! I have at least two more chapters planned out.**

**Thanks for reading! **


	2. Into the Storm

**A/N: I hope you're enjoying the story! Please let me know if you'd like me to continue.**

* * *

"I want to go with you!"

"Out of the question." Maxie ignored the girl, continuing to pack a bag full of supplies. Only a few minutes had passed since he received the distressing news from Shelley, but he wanted to act as quickly as possible. The storm was only predicted to get worse, and he didn't want Archie out there alone and vulnerable. He only hoped that Archie at least had the foresight to take his Pokémon along.

"Why not? I've been through worse. I'm tough!" May jutted her bottom lip out defiantly, and tried to make herself look taller. Maxie sighed.

"I know, May. I'm not doing this to punish you; I just think it's too dangerous. I couldn't live with myself if any harm came to you." May's expressions softened, and she climbed up to sit on the table so she could match his eye-level.

"But what if something happens to you in the storm, and I'm not there to save your butt?" He chuckled for the first time since this mess had started. He couldn't argue with her, she really had braved worse.

"Fine." He relented. "But there are a few rules."

"Aren't there always with you?" She smirked. He let that one slide as he continued.

"Bring your Pokémon, I don't want you defenceless."

"Got it!"

"Make sure you have your PokéNav, if you get lost it'll help me find you. The last thing I need is to lose both of you."

"PokéNav, check!"

"And last, stay close to me and please be careful." She mock saluted and jumped down from the table.

"You got it, boss!"

"May, put on your coat before you go outside. You'll get sick. And don't call me boss!" He called after her.

The two of them finished packing, and loaded it into the back of one of Team Magma's jeeps.

"Can I drive?" May asked. Maxie gave her a knowing smile and a chuckle before starting the engine and driving off.

* * *

The rain was pounding when Archie left Aqua/Magma Headquarters. It came down in sheets, and he was freezing down to his bones. Of course he wasn't thinking clearly enough to take a jeep, he just ran. He continued to run, trying desperately to forget the things that had just happened. Maxie's harsh words echoed in his mind over and over.

_'It's hard to trust someone who doesn't tell me anything'_

_'We can't be hiding things'_

_'the end of the world'_

He kept going until his lungs ached, and his legs felt like they would collapse. He finally stopped running, and fell to his knees, gasping for air. He had no idea where he was, the surroundings were completely unfamiliar.

_'I must have wandered off of the route somewhere.' _

He looked around for any landmarks, but instead caught sight of a nearby cave. It wasn't much, but at least it would provide temporary refuge from the rain. He ran for the opening, and found it much larger than he expected. It was roomy, and it looked like there was a spring of water coming up through the ground. The water was pure, so he drank some, and sat by the edge. It was cold. He didn't know what would become of him if he had to stay the night out here, but what other choice was there? Could he really go back after all that happened?

No, he decided. He would stay here until the storm passed, and decide what to do from there. He let his Sharpedo out of its pokéball, letting it splash around in the spring. It didn't goof off for long however. Sharpedo and Archie had been a team for so long that it knew him better than just about anyone. Sensing Archie's distress, the Pokémon rested its head on its master's hand, looking into his eyes. It let out a small cry, as if asking a question.

"We can't go home, buddy. I'm sorry."

Archie let Mightyena and Crobat out of their Pokéballs, and they huddled together with him, sensing his pain.

Just as he began to drift off, he heard a small Pokémon crying from a distance. Lifting Mightyena off of his lap, Archie walked deeper into the cavern, looking for the source of the cry.

"Aron!" It repeated. He finally caught sight of it.

"Hey, little guy. Are you stuck?"

"Aron." It persisted. From far away, there was another faint cry.

"Aron!"

"Aron!" More and more piped up, accompanied by a thunderous roar. From the depths of the cave, a herd of wild Pokémon stampeded toward an unsuspecting Archie. He ran for the mouth of the cave, only to find that the herd's strength had loosened the boulders, causing them to seal off the entrance. The whole cave continued to shake, and Archie had no way out. A sudden bark from Mightyena startled him, as if a warning. Archie glanced up to see the roof of the cave, where a large rock had dislodged itself from the ceiling and was headed straight for him! He tried to dive out of the way, but he wasn't quick enough. The rock hit. The last thing he heard was a concerned Mightyena and the oncoming stampede as everything went black.


	3. Mightyena Plays Lassie

"Maxie, we've been driving for hours. It's getting dark; don't you think we should head back?" May was worried. She had never seen Maxie like this before. He stared straight ahead at the road as if deep in thought, and didn't acknowledge her attempts at small talk.

"We can't go back yet, he's still out there."

"Right." She switched her PokéNav on, and dialled a familiar number. "Shelly?"

"Hey, kid. Any sign of Archie?"

"Not yet. We're heading up Route 120 toward Fortree City. How about you?"

"No sign of him. Courtney and I are checking out the sea near Lilycove, and I think Matt and Tabitha are heading toward Mauville."

"I asked Steven and Wallace to keep an eye out close to Sootopolis." May answered.

Shelly laughed on the other end.

"You sure do have friends in high places, don't you kid?" She paused, and May could hear a shout in the background. "Hey, I'm going to give Courtney a hand above deck, I'll give you a call if anything changes."

"OK, thanks." She hung up, and turned back to the driver, who glanced her way.

"No change, I assume."

May sighed.

"No change." They kept driving toward Fortree City, where May planned to ask around about Archie. She had grabbed a picture from her room so that they could identify him. The photo was taken at a picnic last month. Archie stood in the middle, with his arms around May and Maxie, smiling. They all looked so happy… May felt a weight in the pit of her stomach when she looked at it. What if they never found him?

Maxie was worried about many of the same things, and he couldn't even bring himself to look at the photo. He took a deep breath, trying to hold himself together for May's sake. The same nagging thoughts that had been bothering him earlier had returned, and he couldn't help but feel that this whole mess had been his fault. If only he had kept his temper in check, and hadn't lashed out at Archie. Whatever Archie had been trying to say was obviously hard for him, and Maxie felt he should have tried to be more understanding.

He reasoned that there was no point in dwelling on the past, and instead focused on what he would do if- _when_ they found Archie. After all that happened, what could he say?

"Maxie, watch out!" May screeched from the passenger seat. Maxie snapped back to reality, slamming on the brakes. There was a Pokémon in the middle of the road, and it seemed adamant about staying put.

_'That's strange; I've never seen a Mightyena in the wild before.'_ Maxie thought, staring at the Pokémon that was acting as a road block. He looked closer at it, before realizing it had something in its mouth.

"May, stay in the jeep."

"But -"

"May, _please._"

Maxie got out of the vehicle and walked slowly toward the Pokémon. "Easy…Easy…" That was strange; the Mightyena didn't seem afraid of him. Instead, it wagged its tail as if greeting an old friend. The Pokémon wore a blue collar around its neck with Team Aqua tags; it was definitely Archie's. The dog Pokémon dropped its item at Maxie's feet and looked at him expectantly as he picked it up. He unfolded the blue cloth, and gasped at what he saw.

"That's Archie's bandana!" May was suddenly standing next to him, although he distinctly remembered asking her to stay in the jeep. "And is that…" she trailed off. It was. The bandana was stained with blood. Maxie's eyes grew wide as he turned to Mightyena.

"Can you take us to him? Mightyena, can you lead us to where Archie is?" Mightyena barked, and took off at a full run. The two humans followed close behind, although Maxie was having a lot of trouble catching up.

_'Maybe I should join Archie for regular workouts after all.'_

They finally reached the cave, panting for breath. The entrance had been sealed off by several large boulders, none of which would give way to their pulling and prodding. Maxie reached for a pokéball.

"Camerupt, use Strength!" Even Camerupt had trouble with the rocks, but they eventually budged, leaving room for them to enter.

As soon as the hole was opened, hundreds, maybe thousands of Aron came pouring out.

"Those Aron must have blocked off the entrance to the cave!" May exclaimed.

"No doubt." Maxie agreed. As the last few wild Pokémon trickled from the cave, they pushed inside. They followed Mightyena's frantic barks, and finally found them. It wasn't a pretty sight.

Archie had fallen on the ground after the rock hit, and the blow to the head had knocked him unconscious. The impact had also caused severe bleeding from his head, and it was clear he had lost a lot of blood. Not only that, the Aron appeared to have tramped him, causing further damage. His clothes were torn, and he had gashes on his arms and legs.

Maxie propped up Archie's head, and desperately checked for a pulse.

"Archie? Archie, c'mon, you've gotta wake up!" May was crying, trying to shake her adopted father awake. Maxie had all but given up, when suddenly he felt it.

It was weak, but it was a pulse.

"May, come on. We've got to get him out of here!" Together with their Pokémon, May and Maxie managed to get him into the back seat of the jeep, and May climbed in with him. Maxie started the engine, and they took off; there was no time to waste.

**A/N: There's still more to come for this! I'm planning at least one more chapter and an epilogue. Thanks for your continued support, you're great!**


	4. Courtney and Maxie

A/N: I'm so sorry for the long wait for this short chapter, I had something come up in my personal life. I'm hoping to have another chapter and an epilogue after this up really soon, so thanks for following the story! In this chapter, I'm going to explore the relationship between Courtney and Maxie. I like the idea of them having a really close platonic relationship, and I wanted to give some insight into Maxie's thoughts. Enjoy!

* * *

"Boss? I'm worried about you."

It had been five hours since they had brought Archie back to the base. The resident doctor checked him out, but she told them that only time could tell. May, upon Shelly's insistence, had gone to bed hours ago, but Courtney couldn't persuade Maxie to leave Archie's bedside.

Forming a bond with Courtney was a challenge, but she had always had one with Maxie. On Team Magma, she was his next-in-command, as well as his confidant when he needed to talk. She was always there to stop him from making questionable decisions, from the time she had to stop him from using a fork to get a bagel out of the toaster to the time she had to encourage him to go on his first date with Archie. She doted on him constantly, now more so than ever.

"Maxie, it's late. Don't you think you should get some sleep?"

"I'm fine." He murmured, but didn't turn to face her. She made a cautious approach, before pointing to the empty chair beside him.

"Do you mind?"

"…No." She sat down, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. They sat quietly, each deep in their own thoughts.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I don't have a lot to say." He answered.

"I know you, Maxie. That's your worried face, and you know it," She tried to coax a smile from him, but failed. "I understand if you don't want to talk, but my offer stands." He finally turned to look at her.

"What did he want to tell me?" Maxie asked.

"Pardon?"

"We were arguing because he had something important to say to me, but he wouldn't tell me what it was. I just keep thinking that if I had been more understanding with him, this wouldn't have happened. I lost my temper, and now Archie is paying the price for it."

Courtney was momentarily stunned. She knew that they were arguing, but she had no idea that Maxie felt so guilty about what he'd done. Her expression softened as she turned back to him.

"No matter what happens, Archie loves you very much. Maybe you're not the best at controlling your temper, and maybe Archie isn't very good at talking about his feelings, but that's OK, Maxie. They're things you two have to work on together, no relationship is perfect." She took a moment to smile at him and continued. "You two have something really special. I think it's worth the time to work through the problems. When Archie's feeling up to it, you should talk to him."

Maxie turned away from her, but no longer tried to hide the tears. His voice sounded small and most of all, scared.

"What if he doesn't,"

"Doesn't what, Maxie?" She prompted.

"Doesn't wake up?" Her heart sank, and she pulled him close to her, letting his head rest on her shoulder. Gradually his breathing returned to normal, and she realized that he had finally fallen asleep. Gently, she lowered his head onto the chair, using her folded up jacket as a makeshift pillow, and covered him with a blanket from one of the neighboring beds.

"Good night, Maxie." She whispered.


End file.
